Blue Preview: Can Kentucky fight its way off the mat vs. No. 1 Georgia?
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Preview: No. 1 Georgia football at Kentucky
Click below to read more of the Herald-Leader’s and Kentucky.com’s preview coverage ahead of Saturday’s Kentucky-Georgia football game scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at Kroger Field in Lexington.
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Kentucky vs. No. 1 Georgia
When: 3:30 p.m. Saturday.
TV: CBS (Channel 27 in Lexington market).
Announcers: Play-by-play, Brad Nessler; analysis, Gary Danielson; sideline, Jenny Dell.
Radio: WLAP-AM 630, WBUL-FM 98.1.
Satellite Radio: XM Channel 190, Sirius Channel 137, Internet Channel 961.
Records: Kentucky (6-4, 3-4 SEC); Georgia (10-0, 7-0 SEC).
Series history: Georgia leads 61-12-2 and has won the past 12 meetings.
Most recent meeting: In a battle for the SEC East lead, the No. 1 Bulldogs whipped the No. 11 Wildcats 31-13 on Oct. 16, 2021, in Athens, Ga.
Line: Georgia is favored by 22.5 points.
The story line
Coming off an inexcusable home loss to Vanderbilt that snapped the Commodores’ 26-game SEC losing streak, Kentucky will try to recapture some football dignity vs. Kirby Smart’s No. 1-ranked and defending national champion Bulldogs. Georgia has already clinched the East Division’s berth in the SEC Championship Game, but the need to remain the apple of the College Football Playoff Selection Committee’s eye probably assures that the Dawgs won’t turn up flat in Lexington.
The number to watch
Passing yards for Will Levis. After the Kentucky quarterback completed only 11 of 23 passes for 109 yards in the loss to Vanderbilt, Levis expressed shock that he had now gone three straight games with fewer than 200 passing yards in any contest. To have any shot to shock the world against Georgia, UK will need its quarterback to play like the prospective NFL first-round draft pick many analysts project him to be.
The big threat
The Georgia defense. A Kentucky offense that has struggled for most of 2022 will encounter a Georgia defense that is second in the nation in points allowed (11.6 a game), No. 4 against the rush (82.5 yards a game surrendered), No. 6 in total defense (269.8 yards a game) and No. 21 vs. the pass (187.3 yards a game).
On the spot
Mark Stoops. A Kentucky season that began with sky-high expectations has instead descended into mediocrity. Contrary to how the Wildcats have succeeded during the Stoops-era ascension in UK pigskin fortunes, the 2022 Cats have played mistake-prone football and have now lost twice at home in games Kentucky was supposed to win to more-motivated opponents. With No. 1 Georgia, archrival Louisville and, presumably, a bowl game left to play, the pressure is on Stoops to rally his team.
The mood
Is despairing. Kentucky football fans entered 2022 believing that UK’s meeting with Georgia would again, as in 2018 and 2021, come with the SEC East lead at stake. Instead, the Wildcats have put together a largely dispiriting season that cratered in the unexpected loss to short-handed Vanderbilt. An upset of the No. 1 team in the country is a big ask, but the Cats playing with the spirit and fight that has characterized prior Kentucky teams of recent vintage would at least help stabilize a listing ship.
This story was originally published November 14, 2022 at 1:12 AM.
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